Allied Strangers
by falln-angl
Summary: A bond between two people can take many years to develop. Or a few weeks.
1. Chapter One

**Title:** A Stranger's Touch: Allied Strangers  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary: **A bond between two people can take many years to develop. Or a few weeks. [First part in what will hopefully be a series]  
**Type of fic:** Story  
**Disclaimer: **All recognisable characters and places are not mine. They belong to Marvel and/or Marvel Studios, WB, Film Roman (I think), and whoever else claims rights to them.  
**Distribution: **FF.net and Random Thoughts. All else, please just ask.  
**Author's notes: **Sorry there's quite a bit, and with more to probably follow!  
#01 - / denotes psychic thoughts /  
#02 - This is pretty much - and very much - an AU story, however a lot of the stuff that's happened in Seasons One and Two WILL be included. Not all, but some.  
#03 - My accent-writing ability extends only to "Ah" and "mah". I suck at it majorly.  
****#04 - This story is under the assumption that the Brotherhood members do NOT know that Mystique and Ms Darkholme are the same person, and that it was Mystique who recruited all the members. Remember - AU.

***

**Allied Strangers**

_Chapter One_

She was scared. It was what he noticed first. Beneath the scowl and the defensive stance, she was scared. Of what, exactly, he couldn't be sure. There could be several reasons but he didn't dwell on it. Maybe later, but not yet.

Not too surprisingly, he noticed her clothing. Or what he could see of it. Black boots, black gloves, black scarf, large black floor-length coat, buttoned. Even her lips had been painted black, the colour contrasting sharply with the almost too-pale make up. Two white streaks framed her face, not unattractively so.

'Rogue, this is Lance Alvers,' Mystique introduced imperiously. 'Lance, our newest member, Rogue.'

'Ah ain't agreed to anythin' yet,' the girl said in a flat tone, allowing only the briefest glance at him.

'Get acquainted,' Mystique said as if she hadn't heard the girl, turning and walking straight back out the front door.

'From the South, huh?' was the only thing that he could think of, and could have almost kicked himself for the absurdity of his first words to her.

'Where's mah room?' Her voice had softened. She sounded resigned.

'It's upstairs.' Nonexistent gentlemanly manners hurried him forward, grabbing the handle of the suitcase for her as she bent to pick it up. 'Here, I can take that.'

Her hand jerked away from his as they brushed against each other. She took several steps backwards, away from him.

He straightened, looking at her in surprise.

She was breathing fast, arms clutched tightly around herself, eyes suddenly wide and wild as she stared at him. 'Don't do that again!' she yelled at him.

He was confused. 'I didn't do anything.'

Fear. It was written all over her face. 'Don't touch me!'

Completely mystified at her unexpected reaction, he could do nothing but just stand there and gape at the hunched figure before him. 'I barely touched you.'

'You have no idea…' It was a whisper, barely audible and reverberating with pain. And an all too familiar fear. Her eyes travelled from his face to his hands, looking intently at it as if it held desperately sought after answers.

He was suddenly irritated, and he placed his hands on his hips, resisting the urge to hide them behind his back and away from her gaze. 'Look, I don't know what Mystique told you, but I'm a mutant. That doesn't mean I'm going to kill you. If you-'

'Ah'm not afraid of you,' she interrupted grimly.

Lance narrowed his eyes, a little bothered by her words despite what he had just said to her. 'You're damned well afraid of something.'

Her hands visibly tightened their grips on her upper arms, almost like she was trying to crush herself. 'Ah'm afraid of me.'

*

She had no idea how long the two of them stood in utter silence and as still as statues. Her arms ached from hugging herself tightly for so long, but she refused to loosen her hold. She had lived most of her young life with the lie of a terrible skin condition that prevented her from the simple sensation of touch, but she had adjusted, secretly hoping that a cure would eventually be found.

But the truth…

The truth of her 'condition' was beyond what her fifteen-almost-sixteen-year-old mind could comprehend much less accept. The ability to kill, the power to end someone's life with mere contact of the skin. It was soul wrenching.

Her 'condition' had dictated the kind of life she had led - the clothes, the heavy make-up, the crushing loneliness and isolation. Yet it was the continued faith in modern medicine that kept her from giving up entirely. Her adolescence may have been a barrier to understanding her mutation, but it was more than submissive to all matters related to the heart. A lost fifteen-year-old girl is _still_ a fifteen-year-old girl. And fifteen-year-old girls had wants, needs. Fifteen-year-old girls developed crushes.

Flattering as it may be, fifteen-year-old girls were not supposed to render a boy unconscious with the first kiss.

No touch. No kiss. No love.

Despite herself, her eyes travelled back up towards the boy's - Lance's - face. He stared at her, an unreadable expression on his face.

No life.

She looked away again.

'You're room is this way.' His voice was toneless, subdued. Out of the corner of her eye she saw him bend once again to pick up her luggage. He lifted it with ease then turned and started up the stairs.

Rogue followed, still refusing to let her poison-covered hands wander too far away from her body.

*

He dreamed. Of her. Rogue. Of what had happened that day. Of what could have been. Of what _should_ have been. He dreamed of her floating in the air, head thrown back, hair whipping around a pale face, and arms extended on either side. He dreamed of her riding the clouds like the god Zeus, her face contorted in both fury and fear, hurling lightning after lightning down on the X-Men on the ground far below her.

He dreamed of her crying out, 'What do you want with me?'

He dreamed of himself replying earnestly, 'To help! That's all! We want to help! _I_ want to help!'

He dreamed of her asking, 'Why? Why do you want to help me?'

He dreamed of himself saying, 'Because you're Rogue, and we want to. _I_ want to.'

He dreamed of Professor Xavier insisting in his head, 'We _must_ get her, Scott! She is important. We _must_,' in the same urgent tone he had used when Cerebro had first detected her. In a tone he had never heard the Professor use before with any other mutant.

He dreamed of Rogue once again asking, 'Why? Why? Why are you doing this to me?'

He dreamed of himself walking towards her, now also on a cloud, saying, 'We're the good guys. _I'm_ the good guy. We think you're important. _I_ think you're important. Will you come with us? With _me_?'

He dreamed of her smiling at him, placing her hand in his outstretched one. However, at his touch she started to crumble, starting from the point of contact, the dust swirling away in the sudden wind. He dreamed of her smile fading as she looked from her vanishing limb to his face, accusation in her eyes. He dreamed of her stating matter of factly, 'You lied to me, Scott. _You_ lied.'

He dreamed of himself reaching out and vainly attempting to keep her from disappearing, his hands clutching at nothing but air as he cried out in panic, 'No! No, I didn't lie! I didn't!'

He woke suddenly, his vision blurring momentarily before adjusting to the pre-dawn light streaming into his room. He stared at the ceiling, knowing it was white but seeing red. He thought about his dream, about her. He thought about the colours in his dream, all so vivid and bright they almost hurt his eyes. Black, white, green, blue, hints of purple, grey, silver, yellow, flecks of gold. Try as he might, he couldn't remember having seen a shade of red.

He did remember thinking how potent she looked after she had absorbed Storm's powers, how compellingly and hauntingly beautiful.

Scott found himself unwilling to wait to be able to see her again.

**end part one.**


	2. Chapter Two

**Title:** A Stranger's Touch: Allied Strangers  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary: **A bond between two people can take many years to develop. Or a few weeks. [First part in what will hopefully be a series]  
**Type of fic:** Story  
**Disclaimer: **All recognisable characters and places are not mine. They belong to Marvel and/or Marvel Studios, WB, Film Roman (I think), and whoever else claims rights to them.  
**Distribution: **FF.net and Random Thoughts. All else, please just ask.  
**Author's notes: **Sorry there's quite a bit, and with more to probably follow!  
#01 - / denotes psychic thoughts /  
#02 - This is pretty much - and very much - an AU story, however a lot of the stuff that's happened in Seasons One and Two WILL be included. Not all, but some.  
#03 - My accent-writing ability extends only to "Ah" and "mah". I suck at it majorly.  
****#04 - This story is under the assumption that the Brotherhood members do NOT know that Mystique and Ms Darkholme are the same person, and that it was Mystique who recruited all the members. Remember - AU.

***

**Allied Strangers**

_Chapter Two_

'From one freak school to another,' she muttered darkly as she threw her backpack onto the bed. Bayville High was almost an exact replica of her old school. The same sneers and distrustful stares, the same mocking laughter and disdainful words. The only difference were the faces. 'Exactly what Ah wanted.'

Just one reason she looked forward to coming home. Rogue had only been in the Brotherhood house only a week, and already she felt surprisingly at ease. Her housemates' determined effort to make her a part of their family was working despite her efforts to impede them, much to her dismay. Todd was sweet and funny, although he stunk worse than a swamp full of dead animals in the middle of summer. And Lance was…

She wasn't sure exactly what he was, but he was something. He was different from all the other guys she knew. He made her feel comfortable, almost content at who she was, what she was. She found it easy to talk to him about anything, and best of all, he _understood_ her.

The sharp knock on her bedroom door made her jump. 'What is it?' she snapped irritably.

'Yo Roguey, Lance and me are going to get something to eat. Wanna come with?' Todd's voice called back, not at all sounding offended.

Must be pay day. Not for the first time Rogue wondered where Mystique gets the money. Did she work? If so, as what? Surely potential employers would be a little wary with the blue skin. Fortunately Mystique was never around, which made her glad. The woman made her feel slightly nervous. Like a strict and stern old woman with a tight bun, but without the tight bun or the "old" part.

'Uh, sure, give me a minute,' Rogue called back after a long pause.

'See you downstairs!'

She walked to her dresser, opened the top drawer and pulled out a dark green, long sleeved top. As she did something fell from within the folds of the clothing and clattered noisily onto the wooden floorboards. It was the communicator Jean Grey had given her in Mississippi. Rogue, overwhelmed with too much change in too few days, had placed it aside. Had all but forgotten about it. Jean Grey was a member of the X-Geeks. Or rather, the X-Men. They were 'The Enemy'.

Unwillingly, her thoughts turned to the other members of The Enemy. One other member in particular. The tall, good-looking, senior – Scott Summers. Rogue would swear that he had been watching her the past week but couldn't be certain. He had been the guy who had wanted to kill her. Right?

Rogue's memories of that crazy night were vague, the only snatches of what she remembered so disturbing that she didn't even want to think about it. Her last clear memory was of dancing with the football player, Cody, of finally feeling some semblance of normalcy and acceptance. Then he had tripped, fallen over her, and then the pain. The pain that had shot through her head and had seemed to rip her entire being into two. She had been parted into two, one half Rogue one half Cody.

She remembered the panic, the terror. Memories of X-Men suddenly crashing through doors and jumping down from the roof, all wanting to get their hands on her, to hurt her and get rid of her. Kill her.

Rogue shuddered at the thought, forcing herself to forget. She stared down at the communicator still on the floor, a large part of her wanting to stomp on it and break it into tiny pieces. Instead she bent to pick it up, staring at it and weighing the light device in her palm.

The small part of her that wanted to press the button to activate it insisted that she not do something she might later regret. It was the same part of her that continually questioned her memories of what had really happened in Mississippi. The same part that gently returned the communicator back in the drawer.

*

Scott saw the flying disc a fraction too late and as he tried to duck the edge smacked him on the temple. Pain bloomed from the point of impact out, his eyes losing focus for a moment. He stumbled dizzyingly to his knees, both hands shooting up to cradle his head.

/ Scott! /

The shouted name boomed forcefully inside his mind, and he flinched. / Jean, not so loud! /

/ Sorry, Scott. Are you okay? /

Before he could reply, another voice intruded with, 'Come on, kid! Heads up! Pay attention!'

Scott gingerly shook off the lingering effects of the blow to the head. 'Thanks for your concern, Logan. I'm fine.'

'Scott, you know better than the daydream during a training session,' Logan said disapprovingly and without apology. 'You and Jean get back and get ready for school.' He stalked away.

He felt ashamed enough about his actions and said nothing to defend himself. Logan was right. He, Scott, was a leader. He was supposed to be setting the example for the others, and what he did was beyond foolish.

'Scott, are you okay?'

He looked up into the fretful face of Jean. His heart missed a beat. 'I'm fine, Jean. Just a small headache, nothing I can't handle.' He could tell she wanted to know what had caused him to become so inattentive, but she kept silent. He didn't offer any explanations and the two of them walked wordlessly towards the mansion.

'So, uh, what about the new girl, huh?' Jean suddenly said.

Scott was more surprised about her choice of subject rather than her actually speaking. He looked at her. 'You mean Rogue?'

'Yeah. She hasn't contacted us, and she keeps to herself at school. What do you think happens at the Brotherhood house?'

He didn't mention that he had been thinking endlessly about the very same question. Instead he just shrugged. 'I really don't know. She doesn't hang around Lance or Todd much, so maybe that's a good thing?'

'But that's only school. That still leaves quite a few hours in the house, and I've noticed that Lance has been driving her to and from school, but not Todd.' Jean sighed. 'I just don't know, Scott. When I was talking to her, when I gave her the communicator, she just looked so scared and lost. And deep down I know she would have come to us if Mystique hadn't been around. It's like I failed her or something.'

A snatch of an earlier dream flickered through his mind – _'You lied to me, Scott. You lied.' / 'No! No, I didn't lie! I didn't!'_ – and he sympathised with Jean's feeling of failure. He placed a comforting arm over her shoulder, voicing words he often recited in his thoughts. 'It's not your fault, Jean. You did the best you could, and we couldn't have physically forced her to come with us. If she wants to join us, then she will have to come herself of her own free will.'

'Do you think she ever will?'

Scott stared straight ahead. 'I hope so.'

*

'Mystique left us quite a bit for this week,' Lance said as the three of them walked into the air-conditioned grocery store. 'You can pretty much get anything you want.'

'Yo, I'm going to get me some chocolates!' Todd said excitedly, hopping away towards the junk food aisle.

'Bit of a sweet tooth, huh?' Rogue commented, an amused grin involuntarily curving her lips.

Lance grabbed a trolley and they made their way towards the produce section. 'Like you wouldn't believe. A couple of weeks ago he ate his way through about ten large M&M packets in one go.'

She made a face. 'That's sickening. Ah can barely get through one packet.'

'That's okay, Todd will happily eat the rest of it.' He stopped beside the oranges. 'Orange?'

Rogue was not used to this side of him. It was completely out of character to the person that he revealed to the world. She would never have guessed that he would be so comfortable being the adult figure. She nodded at him. 'Ah like oranges.'

Lance smiled and grabbed a bag of oranges. 'Finally, someone else whose diet doesn't consist of only junk food and winged insects.'

For a while the two of them walked up and down the aisled, shopping in near silence. He would ask if she liked a certain food and she would either agree or disagree. If she agreed he would look critically at the price and either add it to the trolley or suggest a less expensive alternative. It was an interesting experience, and not all that dull.

As the time passed Rogue found herself watching him intently.

Lance caught her eye and shrugged at her look. 'My mother was a lousy shopper, so I used to do it. She never looked at the prices and whenever we got to the checkout we never had any money. She'd get upset and start yelling at whoever was behind the counter until the manager was called and we either got thrown out or just got given the stuff so she'd stop making a scene.' He continued walking down the aisle, keeping his gaze on the goods on the shelves. 'Pretty soon I started counting the money before we went shopping and had to keep returning the more expensive stuff on the shelves.'

He laughed suddenly, bitterly. 'I couldn't let her see, of course, or else she'd start screeching that we weren't poor and that we could afford "all them nice things other people bought". I hated her for making me feel worthless when all I was doing was helping. So I started doing the shopping myself, while she was passed out so that she didn't insist on coming along. It was all happy families.'

'How…how old were you?'

'I was ten.'

Rogue felt sympathy for the abused boy that she had never known but refused to let it show. She had always hated those pitying looks others gave her and she knew that Lance would be no different. She wanted to tell him how sorry she was, but the words wouldn't form. It seemed such a ridiculous thing to say. Instead she asked, 'What happened to your mom?'

They had entered the breakfast cereal aisle and they slowed to a crawl, perusing the boxes on offer. 'She died when I was about thirteen, and I got placed in one foster home after another. Did you know Mystique is my legal guardian? At least until I'm twenty-one, then I'm on my own.'

Rogue was stunned. 'She is? Does that mean Todd as well? And me..?'

Lance finally looked at her, an inscrutable look on his face. 'Todd, definitely. As for you, I'm not really sure. Maybe not.'

This time it was her turn to look away, the pain of having left everything she had ever known still fresh. 'Irene was always like a mother to me, although I knew she wasn't. Ah'm not really sure if Ah'm adopted or not, she never said. She was actually the one who said that Ah should go with Mystique, that she could help with what was happening to me.' She shrugged. 'Ah'm still like Ah am, but it does help knowing that now Ah'm not the only one. Ah'm still a freak though.'

'Rogue, you're not a freak,' Lance told her gently. 'And I'm glad that you're here, and with us. How about some Count Chocola?'

'Get two boxes, yo!' Todd's voice called out from the other end of the aisle. He hopped towards them, his arms full of an assortment of chocolate-based sweets, which he dumped into the half full trolley. 'And all these!'

Rogue stared at the boxes and packets that covered the rest of their shopping, glad for the distraction. She and Lance had been – dare she say it? – bonding. It was out of the question. She wasn't supposed to get close to people.

It was dangerous.

**end part two.**

Of course, much thanks goes to those who reviewed. Your comments and thoughts are always appreciated, so thank you very, very much. I am actually quite surprised people read this, and am very flattered that you have. I hope you enjoyed this part, and all upcoming parts. I hope to update at least once a week, just in case anyone is wondering.


	3. Chapter Three

**Title:** A Stranger's Touch: Allied Strangers  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary: **A bond between two people can take many years to develop. Or a few weeks. [First part in what will hopefully be a series]  
**Type of fic:** Story  
**Disclaimer: **All recognisable characters and places are not mine. They belong to Marvel and/or Marvel Studios, WB, Film Roman (I think), and whoever else claims rights to them.  
**Distribution: **FF.net and Random Thoughts. All else, please just ask.  
**Author's notes: **Sorry there's quite a bit, and with more to probably follow!  
#01 - / denotes psychic thoughts /  
#02 - This is pretty much - and very much - an AU story, however a lot of the stuff that's happened in Seasons One and Two WILL be included. Not all, but some.  
#03 - My accent-writing ability extends only to "Ah" and "mah". I suck at it majorly.  
#04 - This story is under the assumption that the Brotherhood members do NOT know that Mystique and Ms Darkholme are the same person, and that it was Mystique who recruited all the members. Remember - AU.

***

**Allied Strangers**

_Chapter Three_

As usual, he found Rogue waiting for him outside the front door. Although they all had breakfast at the same time, she was always ready ahead of him. Lance figured that it was probably because the boys allowed her access to the bathroom first. And more often than not, she was already dressed and ready for school before coming down to breakfast.

'Ready to go?' he asked, leading the way to his Jeep.

'As Ah'll ever be.' Rogue sighed. 'Do you think Ms Darkholme will notice if Ah don't show up for school today?'

Lance turned towards her. He knew how much she disliked the kids at the school, the way they treated her, and felt bad for it. He repeatedly told her to ignore the jerks, that they were stupid and didn't know any better. She would nod and agree but he could still see how much it upset her. 'She'll notice, believe me.'

'It would be nice though, don't you think? Just to not have to care about homework or worry about those dumb kids at school.'

He jumped in behind the wheel and watched as she climbed into the passenger's side. 'You mean you don't do that already?' Lance was pleased to see a smile on her face.

'You know what Ah mean,' she said.

Lance frowned in thought. It was a Monday, the worst day of the week. It wasn't as if he had never cut school before. At his last school he had held the worst record for attendance and tardies. He didn't care. He grinned, jamming the key into the ignition and turning on the engine. 'Let's do it!'

Rogue looked at him in surprise. 'What?'

'Let's blow this town, just head off somewhere for the day.'

She blinked. 'But… what about Mystique? Won't she get mad? And Ms Darkholme isn't going to be very happy.'

He shrugged. 'I doubt Mystique will care too much, and as for Ms Darkholme, well, detention ain't so bad.'

Rogue bit her lower lip as if contemplating her options. Then, she turned back to him with a smile. 'Ah'm in.'

Lance threw the Jeep into gear and all but squealed out of the driveway. He whooped. 'That's my girl!'

*

Mystique scanned the attendance record for the day, keeping an eye out for specific names. All the X-Men were in school. She sneered. Always the perfect ones. However an unexpected cross was marked beside an unexpected name. Rogue.

'Damn.' She hurriedly searched for the seniors list again and easily found the name she seeked. A cross against Alvers, Lance. She swore.

Mystique leaned forward and pressed the button to activate the PA system. 'Todd Tolensky to the principal's office! Todd Tolensky to the principal's office right now!'

She stood and started to pace as she waited for the freshman. She tried not to think of what could be happening between the two older Brotherhood members, knowing that at least it wasn't anything physical. Maybe there were just cutting school. Mystique's nose flared at the idea. How dare they!

A timid knock sounded on her door, interrupting her thoughts. 'Enter!'

As usual Toad's smell preceded him, and she wrinkled her nose in distaste. She walked towards the windows and opened them further as the student hopped into one of the chairs in front of her desk. 'Whatever it was, I didn't do it, yo!'

'Don't worry, Mr Tolensky, you're not in trouble,' she told him. 'I wanted to ask you about your two absent friends, Rogue and Mr Alvers.'

Toad looked crushed. 'Absent? Like they skipping school and they didn't ask me? Yo, that's not cool.'

'Mr Tolensky!'

'I mean, I don't know nothing about that, Ms Darkholme. They always leave the house early and I didn't see the Jeep when I left this morning. See, they always come to school together.'

Mystique frowned. 'I see. When you see them again, be sure to tell them to visit me in my office first thing tomorrow.'

'Sure thing, Ms Darkholme.' He just sat and looked at her, as if waiting.

'You can go now.'

Toad shrugged and hopped out of her office.

However she kept near the windows for a little while longer, thinking. She hadn't been blind to the growing bond between Rogue and Lance. Mystique knew she should be pleased about it, but she was apprehensive. She could feel Rogue's uneasiness around her and knew that the girl still held questions about what had happened in Mississippi. She had to be careful around the girl. She was still fragile and one wrong move could have her running to Xavier and the X-Men.

Rogue's friendship – if it could be called that – with Lance was what was needed to bind her to the Brotherhood, so Mystique should be happy. But yet…something. Lance could never understand the depth of someone like Rogue, and Rogue could not afford to get too emotionally involved with anyone. Even if it was with the most loyal of the Brotherhood members.

Mystique knew that she had to do or say something before it was too late, but couldn't think of anything that would be subtle enough to still keep Rogue with the Brotherhood. Perhaps it was best to leave things as it was for now. Or perhaps Mystique just had to accept what seemed to be inevitable. After all, in the long run, it was for the good of the group.

*

'So, vere is the new girl?' Kurt asked, looking around the quad as he joined them for lunch. 'I haven't seen her all day.'

Jean frowned. 'Neither have I. And I didn't see Lance in English either.'

Kurt groaned. 'Oh, how I vish the Prof would let us skip school for a day! They must be having so much fun.'

Scott tried not to worry too much. So far none of the X-Men have managed to talk to Rogue during her first week at Bayville, but it wasn't for lack of trying. Every time anyone tried to approach her she would turn and almost run in the opposite direction. She wanted nothing to do with them. 'They might not be having fun when Ms Darkholme catches up with them tomorrow,' he said seriously.

Jean grinned at him. 'What's the matter Mr Perfect Attendance Record? Disapproving that a senior would cut school?'

Kurt started to laugh.

'Hey, what's so funny?' a girl's voice asked from behind Scott. Kitty. They greeted the younger girl as she sat opposite him at the table.

'Scott's not happy because Lance is teaching a younger student a lesson in truancy,' Jean informed her.

'Oh, right. That's, like, skipping school, right?' Kitty shook her head. 'I think he did that a lot at my old school, too. And you guys are talking about the new girl, right? Rogue? She wasn't in my biology class this morning.'

'Do you think Mystique will get mad at them?' Kurt asked, biting into his sandwich.

'I don't see why not.' Scott frowned. 'If she wants to discipline them, she would, but I guess we'll probably never know.'

'You know, I didn't think Rogue's so bad,' Kurt said.

Rogue's failure to join the X-Men had been a major topic of conversation since Mississippi, and for some reason they all seemed to dwell a lot on it. The adults', and especially Professor Xavier, obvious disappointment at having 'lost' her didn't help any of the kids too much. Scott wanted to ask them at why the one particular girl was so important, but couldn't do it. He had a feeling it was to do with her powers but didn't understand how it could be more valuable than any of theirs.

'Even though she's, like, always really moody and gloomy and dark?' Kitty asked.

'Well, not everyone can be so peppy and happy all the time like you, Kitty,' Jean teased.

Kitty giggled. 'I am not always so peppy!'

Scott looked at his team mates – his friends – and smiled. This was how things should be. Even though he couldn't imagine Rogue sitting with them, having lunch and laughing, she would still have been a nice addition to their family.

*

'New York sure is a big city,' Rogue said in awe, her eyes constantly moving from one object to another as she tried to take everything in.

'It's beautiful at night,' Lance said, his hand at her elbow as he guided her past the crowded sidewalk and into one of many huge malls of the city. 'You'll have to see it.'

She looked up at him. 'Ah'd like that.'

He nodded. 'Then it's a date. Okay, so now what should we shop for? For some reason Mystique has been leaving us quite a lot of money lately.'

Rogue shrugged, not used to shopping with a boy. Heck, not used to shopping with anyone close to her age. For as long as she could remember Irene had always accompanied her on shopping trips, often choosing everything for her. 'Ah'm not sure Ah know what Ah should be buying. Maybe we could get Todd some nice chocolates?'

Lance chuckled. 'Yeah, poor guy will be upset we didn't invite him along.'

'Chocolates it is then.' She started to walk off in search for any signs of a place they could find chocolates when she felt Lance watching her. She stopped and turned towards him, offering a nervous smile. 'What's up?'

He shook his head as he closed the distance between them. 'You know you're quiet upbeat for a Goth girl.'

Rogue looked away, annoyed at his words. 'Ah didn't choose to be like this, it's just the way things worked out,' she muttered darkly. 'Irene insisted that Ah had to be always covered, from mah face to mah arms and legs. Being like this just makes it easier to keep everyone at a distance.'

'Not everyone.'

She looked sharply at him. 'What?'

Lance shrugged. 'I said not everyone. Todd and I are okay with you.' He offered her a grin. 'In fact, I have a feeling that Todd kinda has a little crush on you.'

Rogue had never thought anyone could ever develop a crush on her, and she blushed at the thought. 'Ah don't think so. Come on, let's go get those chocolates.'

'You know, we'll probably have enough money to buy you something nice. If you want.'

She walked ahead, avoiding having to look at him. 'Ah'm okay.' 

**end part three.**


	4. Chapter Four

**Title:** A Stranger's Touch: Allied Strangers  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary: **A bond between two people can take many years to develop. Or a few weeks. [First part in what will hopefully be a series]  
**Type of fic:** Story  
**Disclaimer: **All recognisable characters and places are not mine. They belong to Marvel and/or Marvel Studios, WB, Film Roman (I think), and whoever else claims rights to them.  
**Distribution: **FF.net and Random Thoughts. All else, please just ask.  
**Author's notes: **Sorry there's quite a bit, and with more to probably follow!  
#01 - / denotes psychic thoughts /  
#02 - This is pretty much - and very much - an AU story, however a lot of the stuff that's happened in Seasons One and Two WILL be included. Not all, but some.  
#03 - My accent-writing ability extends only to "Ah" and "mah". I suck at it majorly.  
#04 - This story is under the assumption that the Brotherhood members do NOT know that Mystique and Ms Darkholme are the same person, and that it was Mystique who recruited all the members. Remember - AU.

***

**Allied Strangers**

_Chapter Four_

'…and Mystique didn't even say anything, yo,' Todd was saying as he and Rogue walked past. 'And you guys didn't even invite me.'

'Aw, Todd, we bought you some nice chocolates, didn't we?' Rogue replied in a sweet voice. 'You liked them, didn't you?'

'Sure I liked them, but I would have liked to have gone too, you know.'

Their voices were quickly fading, and before Scott could overanalyse his actions, he stood up and ran after the two younger students. 'Hey, Rogue! Wait!'

Rogue and Todd stopped, turning to look at him. A scowl crossed her features, which Scott took as a bad sign. 'Ah got nothing to say to you.'

'Yeah, Summers, so why don't you make like an egg and beat it,' Todd added.

Scott just stared at the bad-smelling freshman, wondering how anyone could stand walking with him. He turned back to Rogue, offering her a smile. 'I was just, you know, wondering if you've read the required reading for English class yet.'

'You're asking about homework?' she asked, endearingly arching one eyebrow.

'Yeah. I just thought that maybe, if you wanted to, we could-'

'Hey, Scott!'

Scott ignored the call for attention. He kept the smile on his face, his eyes firmly on Rogue. 'If maybe we could meet and study-'

'Scott!'

Annoyed, he finally turned to face his friend. 'Kurt, just wait!' Scott turned back to Rogue and was disappointed to be met by her and Todd's retreating backs. He thought about once again running after them but changed his mind. He was certain that he had just been about to make a connection with the girl, but his chance had come and gone.

With a defeated sigh he walked in the opposite direction towards Kurt.

*

'Well, it's nice to see that you all remember where your home is,' a cold voice greeted them as they entered the house.

The three of them jumped at the voice, Rogue's hand reaching out to clutch his arm as they turned. Lance forced a look of boredom on his face. 'Hey, Mystique. Didn't know you were stopping by today.'

She glared at him. 'Don't get smart with me, Alvers.'

The urge to apologise was strong, but he didn't want Mystique to know how much he feared her. Fortunately, before he could answer in any way, loud noises from the kitchen distracted them all.

'Woah! Who's that?' Todd asked suspiciously as they all turned towards the sound.

From behind them lumbered the largest kid Lance had ever seen. He had a large tub of mocha chocolate ice cream in one hand and a large spoon in the other.

'Hey, that's _mah_ ice cream!' Rogue said indignantly. Lance found it both amusing and charming that she was extremely possessive of _her_ ice cream.

The stranger grinned at her. 'Yeah, it's nice.'

'This is Fred Dukes,' Mystique's voice introduced tonelessly. She moved so that she stood between the three of them and the new kid. 'Fred, your new housemates. Todd, Lance, Rogue.' As was her usual manner, she walked out and left them.

Lance just looked at the obviously new member of the Brotherhood. He had lost his grin and was now staring at the three of them, almost daring them to say something they would regret.

'Yo man, you're big!' Todd said.

'Are you making fun of me?' Fred demanded almost immediately, glaring hard at the freshman.

'No way, man, I wouldn't do that,' Todd replied hastily, surreptitiously moving behind Rogue.

'Don't make fun-'

'Hey man, chill,' Lance commanded, standing in front of Rogue and Todd. 'No one's making fun of you. Todd didn't mean anything by it.'

Fred's eyes darted between the three of them, then he looked down at the ice cream. 'I don't like it when people make fun of me,' he said darkly, before turning and walking back into the kitchen.

'He'd better replace that ice cream,' Rogue muttered loudly as she started climbing the stairs. 'Ah only just bought it yesterday.'

Lance turned to watch her.

'She really loves her ice cream, huh?' Todd said, standing beside him.

'Yeah, she does.'

'You think Scott Summers would want to know about how much she loves her ice cream?'

Lance felt the immediate feelings of dislike rise at the mention of his rival. 'What the hell are you talking about, Toad?'

As if sensing his displeasure, the younger boy started to back away. 'Summers was just pestering her this afternoon, that's all. You think maybe he likes her?'

Ignoring the question, Lance hurried upstairs. He knocked loudly against Rogue's closed door.

'Who is it?' she called out.

'Rogue, it's me.'

He heard soft footfalls, and then the door opened to reveal an emotionless Rogue. 'What is it, Lance?'

Although the two of them had grown close – as close as she would allow – in the two weeks since she had arrived, she would still distance herself from him at times. He knew it was just who she was, that it would take time before she fully let her guard down, and he had to keep reminding himself that he could wait. Still, it was frustrating and disappointing.

'Is Summers bugging you?' Lance asked, disliking the demanding tone that had crept in.

She narrowed her eyes at him. 'Ah can look after mahself, Lance. Ah'm not helpless.'

He sighed, shaking his head. 'I was just worried, okay? I don't like the idea of Summers stalking you.'

'He wasn't stalking me,' she muttered, looking away.

Rogue defending the X-Man was the last thing he expected and he just stared at her for the moment, unsure of how to react.

'It's nothing Ah can't handle,' she continued, then took a step back. 'Ah got homework.' Rogue closed the door.

Lance clenched his hands at the thought of Summers studying the lone female Brotherhood member, and he swore under his breath.

**end part four.**

Once again, much thanks goes to all those sweet and wonderful people who have reviewed. And to Goofn1, a special thank you for your detailed thoughts on the two chapters. I am actually quite a big fan of Todd, and I feel bad that on the show he just doesn't seem to quite fit in with the Brotherhood (that's how I see it), and definitely not with the X-Men, and I wanted to add him as much as I could to the story. As for the Rogue/Lance "date" - I didn't even think of it like that, but yay!


	5. Chapter Five

**Title:** A Stranger's Touch: Allied Strangers  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary: **A bond between two people can take many years to develop. Or a few weeks. [First part in what will hopefully be a series]  
**Type of fic:** Story  
**Disclaimer: **All recognisable characters and places are not mine. They belong to Marvel and/or Marvel Studios, WB, Film Roman (I think), and whoever else claims rights to them.  
**Distribution: **FF.net and Random Thoughts. All else, please just ask.  
**Author's notes: **Sorry there's quite a bit, and with more to probably follow!  
#01 - / denotes psychic thoughts /  
#02 - This is pretty much - and very much - an AU story, however a lot of the stuff that's happened in Seasons One and Two WILL be included. Not all, but some.  
#03 - My accent-writing ability extends only to "Ah" and "mah". I suck at it majorly.  
#04 - This story is under the assumption that the Brotherhood members do NOT know that Mystique and Ms Darkholme are the same person, and that it was Mystique who recruited all the members. Remember - AU.  
#05 - Thanks to wolviesgal's Home Page for the use of transcripts.

***

**Allied Strangers**

_Chapter Five_

As Mystique walked towards the Principal's office, a figure caught her attention. She stopped, her eyes narrowing. Rogue stood before her open locker, seemingly frozen, her head turned and her attention focused on something. Or someone.

'Wow. Y'all really look out for each other, don't you?' she asked. She sounded both wistful and mocking.

'Yeah. Yeah, we do that.' Scott Summers.

At she recognised the voice, Mystique made her presence felt. 'What's going on here?' she demanded, stepping forward.

Rogue whirled around, hugging her books to her chest as she turned fearfully to face her. 'Nothing!'

'We were just talking, Principal Darkholme,' Scott said, looking as if he wanted to step forward and protect the girl.

Mystique stared hard at Scott, then glanced down at Rogue. 'Then you had best stop your talking and get to class. Have I made myself clear?'

'Yes, ma'am,' Rogue said.

Scott ignored her completely, and instead turned towards Rogue. 'Hey, don't forget. In the park after school, and bring the playbook with you.'

Mystique watched the girl closely as she assented with a murmur. A hint of a smile seemed to gently curve the girl's dark lips as she watched Scott Summers walk away. Rogue's eyes flickered once more to face the Principal's before she slammed her locker shut and hurried away.

Mystique narrowed her eyes, not liking what had just happened between the two young mutants. Or the implications of Scott's parting words. Something had to be done.

*

'Nice work, Blob,' Mystique said, unable to stop the smirk from appearing on her face. 'You took down Jean Grey.'

The huge kid turned to look at her, a worried look on his face. 'I think she's really hurt. We gotta help her!'

'Oh no, Fred,' Mystique countered. 'Didn't you ask her out before?'

'How did you-'

'And didn't she say she was your friend?' she continued. 'Now then, Fred, if she was really your friend she would go out with you, don't you think? And after you asked so nicely.'

'But it looks like she's out of it,' Fred protested, but looking excited at the prospect of a date with Jean Grey.

'Think how much she'd appreciate waking up to a nice date already prepared. Dinner and dancing, and lots of candles. Girls like candles, Fred. Candles are romantic.'

A dreamy look had come over the boy's face. 'Yeah, and Jean would love me, wouldn't she?'

Mystique rolled her eyes, knowing that Fred wouldn't take notice. 'Yes, Fred. Now, I know the perfect place for your perfect date.'

'_Come and get her, Summers,_' Mystique thought spitefully, her mind on the two teenagers soon to be meeting in the park. '_Come and rescue your precious Jean Grey._'

*

She giggled. 'The girls are right. You are a charmer.'

Taken aback by the sound of her giggling, Scott retorted with, 'Look, I'm just reading the lines, okay?', and wished that he could have taken it back.

Rogue lost her smile, and she looked away. 'Yeah, I know. It's just, sometimes…I wish…'

He looked intently at her, silently urging her to finish her sentence. When she didn't, he prompted her. 'Wish what?'

A look of frustration crossed her face. 'I wish…I could get close to somebody.' She sighed, staring down at the table. 'But you know what happens when I do.'

Scott lifted a hand, about to reach over and touch her when the familiar *Bamf!* of a teleporting Kurt stopped him.

'Ooh! Tender moment here?' Kurt grinned. 'Sorry to interrupt.'

Scott wanted to wrap his hands around the kid's furry throat. For the briefest moment Rogue had opened herself up to him, and he saw a glimpse of the scared and lonely girl from Mississippi.

'I swear, he's like an annoying little brother,' she said, irritated. Kurt stuck his tongue out at her, and it was then Scott noticed that he was in uniform.

'What's the problem?' he asked, trying not to get too worried just yet.

'Jean's been nabbed,' Kurt said, almost matter of factly.

All thoughts of Rogue and Mississippi flew from his mind as he reached out and grabbed Kurt by the shirt. 'What?'

'Easy on the exquisite costume, mein freund! Wolverine's on the scent but I'm supposed to collect you.'

Scott knew exactly who had her, and he hit the table in fury. 'Blob! If he's hurt her, I'll-' He broke off as he noticed Rogue looking down on the ground. Too immersed with thoughts of Jean being kidnapped by the Brotherhood members, he glared at the girl. 'You know anything about this?'

Rogue's head snapped up, her eyes flashing. 'No! And even if I did, I wouldn't tell you!'

He believed her, unsure of why he should. But he did, and he felt a little of his anger disappear. Yet he couldn't help having the last word. He wanted her to think about her team mate's actions. 'Then I hope you can live with your conscience.' He turned to Kurt. 'Teleporter to maximum, Mr Wagner.'

*

Hard as she tried, Rogue couldn't stop thinking about what had just happened. She had been bored with the play, but being with Scott had been strangely comforting. Kind of like with Lance… And before she had known it she was revealing her deepest secrets to him, and all he'd had to do was look at her.

Fortunately, the blue kid showed up when he did. Rogue wasn't sure how much more she would have spilled had he not arrived. Already she was regretting having said too much, especially since Scott forced her to remember their situation. He was X-Men, she was Brotherhood.

'Or should that be Sisterhood?' she murmured, allowing herself a wry grin.

They were on opposite sides of the fence. They were opponents, rivals. Enemies. Enemies were _not_ supposed to have fuzzy feelings for one another.

'Why does he have to be so damned cute anyway?' Rogue sighed, finally admitting to herself that she liked him. 'And why is he always being so nice to me?' She remembered his earlier accusations. 'Well, most of the time anyway.'

But there was Little Miss Perfectly Popular herself, Jean Grey. Perfect hair, perfect clothes, perfect smile, perfect make up, perfect grades, perfect friends, perfect personality, probably perfect family.

'Ah bet she even pukes perfectly too,' she muttered darkly.

Rogue could tell how much Scott liked Jean, even if Scott didn't realise it himself yet. He was so protective of her, and the way he had gotten angry when he found out that she was in trouble. For the briefest instant Rogue wished she was in Jean's shoes, just to know how it felt to have Scott charging in to rescue her.

'Even that ice cream stealer likes her,' she said out loud. At the mention of the newest Brotherhood member, Rogue remembered why it was that Scott had run off in such a hurry. Fred had taken Jean.

Scott's words echoed in her head: _Then I hope you can live with your conscience._

'Ah lived with it fine until you came along, Scott Summers,' Rogue said irritably. 'And why should Ah care about what happens to your stupid girlfriend? It's not like you really care about what Ah think anyway. You'll save her, and she'll be fine, and everything will be back to perfect again and you won't even bother to talk to me anymore.'

She hated how bitter she sounded, but she couldn't help it. Scott's sudden niceness towards her was confusing. She considered his attempts to ask about homework the previous afternoon before Kurt, once again, had interrupted. He had seemed amiable, friendly. Then she considered the Scott – Cyclops – who had tried to hurt her in Mississippi. Was he being nice to her now as an X-Geek plan of some sort? Did he still want to hurt her?

Rogue stood up from the park bench, hugging her textbook to her chest. She noticed Scott's book sitting on the opposite bench, and hesitated. Unsure of why she did it, she reached out and took his as well. She walked away, heading towards home.

/ Wolverine has the location. I'm transmitting coordinates. /

Rogue jumped at the voice in her head, then turned wildly from one side to the other looking for who it could belong to. She was alone in the immediate area. She waited uneasily for anything else, but only heard the aforementioned coordinates. It was a strange feeling, and it creeped her out. It was like the voice had been _in_ her head. She had the feeling that she would have still heard the voice had she been deaf.

And Wolverine…? He must be the X-Man who had attacked her first while she had been in Cody's room. The X-Geeks were rescuing Jean, the coordinates were her location.

'Ah don't care, okay?' she yelled out, addressing the sky. 'Ah don't care what happens to her!'

But despite her words, Rogue changed her course and started the other way.

**end part five.**


	6. Chapter Six

**Title:** A Stranger's Touch: Allied Strangers  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary: **A bond between two people can take many years to develop. Or a few weeks. [First part in what will hopefully be a series]  
**Type of fic:** Story  
**Disclaimer: **All recognisable characters and places are not mine. They belong to Marvel and/or Marvel Studios, WB, Film Roman (I think), and whoever else claims rights to them.  
**Distribution: **FF.net and Random Thoughts. All else, please just ask.  
**Author's notes: **Sorry there's quite a bit, and with more to probably follow!  
#01 - / denotes psychic thoughts /  
#02 - This is pretty much - and very much - an AU story, however a lot of the stuff that's happened in Seasons One and Two WILL be included. Not all, but some.  
#03 - My accent-writing ability extends only to "Ah" and "mah". I suck at it majorly.  
#04 - This story is under the assumption that the Brotherhood members do NOT know that Mystique and Ms Darkholme are the same person, and that it was Mystique who recruited all the members. Remember - AU.  
#05 - Thanks to wolviesgal's Home Page for the use of transcripts.

***

**Allied Strangers**

_Chapter Six_

The atmosphere in the Brotherhood house was tense. Fred was furious. Todd was much jumpier than usual. And Rogue…

Rogue had reverted to the scared, sullen, and hostile girl whom Mystique had first introduced. She refused to talk to anyone, to him. She refused to explain herself, to defend herself against Fred's enraged finger pointing. In fact, she refused to say anything at all. She hadn't joined them for dinner, and had left the house before any of the others had even woken up.

Lance hated it. He had heard Fred's claims that Rogue had helped the X-Geeks, but he didn't want to believe it. Why would she help them? She despised them, for what they tried to do to her back in Mississippi. She wouldn't dare help them. Would she?

Lance slammed his bowl down onto the sink, not caring whether or not it cracked. 'Why won't she talk to me?' he muttered in frustration.

'Maybe it's because she's with the X-Freaks,' Fred said scornfully.

'Shut up, Blob!' Lance snarled, whirling around to face the newest Brotherhoood. 'This is all your fault.'

'I wasn't the one who turned my back on the Brotherhood,' Fred shot back, glaring hard back at him. 'She was the one who attacked _me_!'

'Then she did it for a reason!'

'Yeah, like she's in love with one of them!'

Lance was stunned, not at all expecting Fred's reply. Without another word he turned and walked away, grabbing his bag from the floor as he stalked out of the house. He angrily threw the bag into the passenger's seat of his Jeep, jamming the keys into the ignition. But he didn't start the engine yet, the words echoing in his head.

_…she's in love with one of them!_

It didn't take a scientist to figure out which one of "them" Fred had been referring to. Lance himself wasn't completely blind to Rogue's wandering interest. He had seen her watching the X-Geek when she thought nobody was looking.

But _he_ was.

*

'Rogue, wait!'

She paused at the sound of her name, but then continued towards the library, her refuge during many lunchtimes. Rogue refused to look back, to wait, knowing whom the voice belonged to.

'Damnit, will you wait!'

She allowed herself a small smile at Lance's persistence. She knew that he would never take "no" as his first answer, if ever. Although she didn't stop, she slowed down enough to let him catch up. 'What do you want, Lance?'

He frowned at her. 'I wanted to talk to you. You've been avoiding me since yesterday.'

'No Ah haven't,' she said weakly, then scowled. She didn't have to justify any of her actions to him, and she knew what it was that he wanted from her. Answers.

'Yes, you have,' Lance insisted.

'Ah've been busy, alright?'

'Look, I don't care about Fred. But I wanted to know if you're okay.'

Despite herself, Rogue softened at his words. She knew that Lance cared for her, and it was an experience she had to get used to. She'd had Irene, but that was different. Irene had been her guardian, and it had been her job to look after Rogue. But Lance was different. Lance didn't have to care about her, nobody was forcing him. He cared about her out of his own free will, because he _wanted_ to.

'Ah'm okay, Lance,' she told him quietly, looking down at the grass.

'Look, Rogue, whatever reason you did what you did-'

'Ah did it because it was the right thing to do!' she interrupted, lifting her head to glare at him. She was angry, but she wasn't sure why exactly. 'Ah don't have to explain mahself to you, or to anyone else!'

His eyes flashed. 'I was just about to say that I didn't care about it! Why do you have to be so defensive all the time?' Lance shook his head. 'I thought we were on the same side, Rogue.'

She sighed, her anger abating. 'It's not about sides, Lance. We both know what Ah think of Miss Perfect, but Fred was a complete jerk and Ah don't think even _she_ should be kidnapped like that.'

Lance just looked at her for a moment without saying anything, as if studying her. She began to feel awkward and embarrassed under his scrutiny, but she didn't want to let him see how he was making her feel.

'Uh, Rogue?'

*

Scott looked down at the book in his school bag, and frowned. He didn't remember having packed it the night before, as he didn't have that class for the day, but he knew that it was his. In fact, he didn't even remember seeing the textbook at all last night, the last time he had had the book had been in the park with Rogue when they had rehearsed. He didn't have it with him when he had teleported with Kurt, so he must have left it behind.

And Rogue returned it to him.

The events of yesterday afternoon came back to him. The meeting in the park, where she had opened up to him. Kurt's arrival and bad news, and his accusations. Scott felt bad for having instantly assumed her guilty, and he knew he had to apologise. Especially after the way she had helped them rescue Jean.

It wouldn't have been easy for her attacking her own team mate, and he didn't want to think about what had happened at the Brotherhood house that night. Scott hoped that Rogue hadn't gotten in too much trouble. What would Mystique do to her? Would she be punished?

Scott shook his head, not liking that last thought. He picked up his bag and headed outside. He wanted to find Rogue, to not only apologise but to thank her. For the return of his book, and more importantly, for her help. He wasn't sure where to start.

He decided to skip searching the cafeteria, knowing that she avoided it as much as she could. He headed towards the courtyard, having to walk around the side of the main school building. But he didn't get far as he saw her just outside the library steps. She wasn't alone.

Scott hesitated, not liking the idea of a confrontation with Lance Alvers. But the other senior didn't look to be leaving any time soon, the two Brotherhood members in a seemingly heated discussion. Rogue looked angry, then Lance looked angry. Interrupting them would probably not be a good idea…

He walked purposely towards them. By the time he reached them, both had calmed down a little and were just staring at the other. Scott felt foolish at the idea of turning around and walking away, so he decided to just go for it.

'Uh, Rogue?'

The two of them looked at him in surprise, which was quickly replaced by a scowl on Lance's face. 'What do you want, Summers?' the other boy demanded.

Scott threw him a dirty look. 'I'm not talking to you, Alvers.' He turned back to Rogue, who was now frowning. 'Rogue, look, I wanted to thank you for yesterday.'

If possible, the girl seemed to actually pale beneath her makeup. 'Ah didn't do anything.'

Scott suddenly realised that it was probably a very uncomfortable topic for them, and he quickly amended himself. 'For bringing me back my playbook from the park. Thanks for that.'

'Whatever,' she muttered, ducking her head. 'Ah'm out of here.' She walked away from the both of them.

'Look, Summers, stay away from her,' Lance warned in a low tone, his eyes narrowing.

Scott was annoyed that Lance seemed to be playing the big brother role. 'And who's going to make me?'

Lance narrowed his eyes. 'Just stay away. She's with _us_, Summers. Live with it.'

**end part six.**


	7. Chapter Seven

**Title:** A Stranger's Touch: Allied Strangers  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary: **A bond between two people can take many years to develop. Or a few weeks. [First part in what will hopefully be a series]  
**Type of fic:** Story  
**Disclaimer: **All recognisable characters and places are not mine. They belong to Marvel and/or Marvel Studios, WB, Film Roman (I think), and whoever else claims rights to them.  
**Distribution: **FF.net and Random Thoughts. All else, please just ask.  
**Author's notes: **Sorry there's quite a bit, and with more to probably follow!  
#01 - / denotes psychic thoughts /  
#02 - This is pretty much - and very much - an AU story, however a lot of the stuff that's happened in Seasons One and Two WILL be included. Not all, but some.  
#03 - My accent-writing ability extends only to "Ah" and "mah". I suck at it majorly.  
#04 - This story is under the assumption that the Brotherhood members do NOT know that Mystique and Ms Darkholme are the same person, and that it was Mystique who recruited all the members. Remember - AU.  
#05 - Thanks to wolviesgal's Home Page for the use of transcripts.

***

**Allied Strangers**

_Chapter Seven_

'Try again,' Scott ordered. 'He's got to be somewhere.'

'I am. I'm not getting anything,' Jean replied. 'He's just completely gone.'

He tried not to show his frustration – and guilt – at his helplessness. How could Kurt just disappear like that? Surely Scott hadn't upset him too much for the younger student to actually leave the school grounds? Where would he go?

As he scanned the grounds, a familiar group of students caught his attention. One familiar senior in particular, and he frowned. 'Or somebody did something to him.'

Lance turned, and met his gaze. The two of them hadn't spoken since their confrontation last week when Lance had demanded that he stay away from Rogue. Since then both teams had acquired a new member, and each side continued to size the other from afar.

'What are you looking at, Summers?' Lance asked, narrowing his eyes.

Scott didn't bother wasting any time. 'Where's Kurt?'

A confused look came over Fred's face, but then he scowled. 'Huh? Yeah, like we'd tell you!'

Despite the words originating from Fred, Scott's anger was still concentrated on Lance, and he rushed the other senior and slammed him against the lockers. 'Where is he?' he demanded.

'Get off of me!' Lance shouted, struggling against his grip.

'What have you done with Kurt?'

Before Lance could answer, Scott felt himself being lifted off the ground. Surprised, he let go of Lance's shirt as he realised that Fred had picked him up. He heard Jean speak, then Lance, but before he himself could react or say anything else he found them surrounded by other students chanting "Fight! Fight! Fight!"

Scott knew that Principal Darkholme wouldn't be far behind, nor would she fail to blame the entire incident on members of the X-Men. She seemed to have an intense dislike for anyone who lived in Professor Xavier's mansion.

*

Rogue watched Jean and Scott follow Principal Darkholme into her office, telling herself that she wasn't at all worried about what would happen to them. Or that she didn't feel the least bit guilty about what had happened to Kurt earlier. It hadn't been her fault. She hadn't made him disappear. Not really.

Besides, she hadn't been the one who had gone down into the lab in the first place, nor had she been the one to blow it up.

Rogue was surprised when the two X-Men walked straight back out into the hallway less than a minute later. She turned away, hoping that they didn't notice her. But they were already preoccupied with something, the two of them running towards the opposite direction to where she stood.

She hesitated. Then unsure of why she was doing so, ran after them.

*

They followed her down the stairs, and into the laboratory. The place was beyond a mess, and Scott's concern grew. If this was what the room looked like, he didn't even want to think about what had happened to Kurt.

'This is where it happened,' Rogue said, stopping and facing them. She had shown up only seconds after they had started questioning Toad, demanding that they let him go and claiming that the freshman had nothing to do with it.

They had no choice but to believe her.

But Scott knew that it didn't mean they had to trust her. He looked at her. 'If you've hurt him, I'm gonna-'

'You start threatenin' me and you're never gonna find your friend,' Rogue interrupted, her eyes flashing.

'Take it easy, Cyclops,' Jean warned, taking a step towards him. / We don't want to scare her. /

/ I can't help it, Jean. I'm worried about Kurt. /

/ We all are, but it doesn't mean we start attacking our only lead to finding him. /

'Yo, guys!' Kitty called out, intruding on their psychic conversation. 'We've been running a diagnostic on this thing.'

Scott turned away from Rogue, ignoring her for the moment.

'Cane you believe it?' Evan asked, sounding both amused and amazed. 'It uses CP/M. I mean, talk about retro, man!'

'It's putting out some kinda, like, steady low-power pulse wave that just seems to disappear into thin air,' Kitty said.

'And that means what exactly?' Scott asked, trying not to frown.

'Well, we figure that the pulse has trapped the Crawler in some other dimension.'

'Okay.' Scott nodded, knowing what to do. 'So let's trash this thing.'

*

Rogue surprised herself by not wanting to leave, and not slipping away the first chance she had. She actually _wanted_ to stay. Instead, she had kept to the background as much as possible, watching them.

She found it hard to believe that these were the same people who had wanted to kill her back in Mississippi. They didn't seem to be the type of people who would kill. They were kids! Just like her, and they were all obviously worried about their team mate. Their friend.

As annoying as Kurt seemed to be, they still wanted him back. They were almost like…like a family.

She repeated to herself that the kid's disappearance wasn't her fault, but she still wanted to make sure that he returned okay. The team, after help from Kurt himself, had finally figured out a way to get blue boy out. And she stayed, watching them. Watching _him_.

Scott. The leader. He kept cool and calm, though Rogue saw hints of frustration in him.

'What are they doing?' Evan, a new kid and the new X-Men, asked as Kurt and the boy with him ran away from the portal.

'I don't know, but I hope they hustle!' Scott answered, allowing Rogue another glimpse of his not-quite-in-control self.

'_Come on, blue boy,_' Rogue found herself thinking. '_Hurry up._'

'There they are.' Todd's unmistakable voice coming from behind them. 'And they still got that vape-ray I was telling you about.'

Rogue whirled around, noticing that the Brotherhood were all in uniform, including Quicksilver, their newest member. Her mind flashed to her own uniform, still lying in a drawer, still unused.

Her eyes caught Lance, but his face was impassive. She felt her stomach do a slow somersault, but said nothing.

'Rogue.' The way he said her name sent a shiver down her spine. 'Mystique sent us to find you. So you with us?' His lips tightened almost imperceptibly. 'Or them?'

Her answer caught in her throat, but before she could say anything she heard Scott's voice.

'Mystique?' the X-Men asked sharply. 'You working for her?'

The accusation in his tone angered her. Who was he to say who she could work for? After the way he tried to kill her back in Mississippi, how dare he demand such things from her!

Rogue glared at him. 'Hey, _Summers_, you got your friends, I got mine,' she shot back, almost spitting out his name as she said it. 'But this ain't my fight. I'm out of here.'

She felt Lance's eyes on her as she walked past, but she ignored him. It wasn't until she was outside that she realised her heart was racing.

**end part seven.**

First of all, many thanks to those who continue to review this little story of mine. I'm glad you guys are liking it so far. Second, major apologies for the lateness of this chapter. I've been working every night - and I do mean EVERY night - for the past month, and I just haven't had much time to do any writing at all. However, if you don't mind the waiting, I am trying hard to work on it as much as I can. I know how frustrating it can be to find a story that's not only incomplete, but hasn't been updated in months with seemingly no chance for updates in the future either. I don't want this to be one of those. So for those who are still reading, thank you for your patience.


	8. Chapter Eight

**Title:** A Stranger's Touch: Allied Strangers  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary: **A bond between two people can take many years to develop. Or a few weeks. [First part in what will hopefully be a series]  
**Type of fic:** Story  
**Disclaimer: **All recognisable characters and places are not mine. They belong to Marvel and/or Marvel Studios, WB, Film Roman (I think), and whoever else claims rights to them.  
**Distribution: **FF.net and Random Thoughts. All else, please just ask.  
**Author's notes: **Sorry there's quite a bit, and with more to probably follow!  
#01 - / denotes psychic thoughts /  
#02 - This is pretty much - and very much - an AU story, however a lot of the stuff that's happened in Seasons One and Two WILL be included. Not all, but some.  
#03 - My accent-writing ability extends only to "Ah" and "mah". I suck at it majorly.  
#04 - This story is under the assumption that the Brotherhood members do NOT know that Mystique and Ms Darkholme are the same person, and that it was Mystique who recruited all the members. Remember - AU.  
#05 - Thanks to wolviesgal's Home Page for the use of transcripts.

***

**Allied Strangers**

_Chapter Eight_

Ever since the incident with Kurt and the lab a few days earlier, Rogue had avoided all members of both teams as much as she could. With the Brotherhood, it wasn't hard. None of them would speak to her, not even Lance. It hurt more than she wanted to admit.

But the X-Men were a different story. Scott continued to try and befriend her for some reason, but this time he was joined by Kurt. They would smile whenever they saw her, greet her when they passed in the hallway. Kurt had even asked her once to join them for lunch.

But Rogue refused to be lured into their little group. She knew she would never fit in with them. How could she? Even if – and she reminded herself that it was a very big IF – she wanted to, would they ever truly accept her? She'd been living with the Brotherhood for the past several weeks. Surely they would have reservations about her joining them.

That was IF she wanted to, of course.

'Which Ah _don't_,' she said out loud, knitting her brows together. 'Why would Ah want to join a bunch of people who want me dead anyway?'

Rogue stared at the Maths book in front of her, attempting to concentrate on the figures and calculations she had to do for homework. But her mind kept drifting. First, to Scott. Then Lance. And back to Scott.

'Why'd he have to be so…so…' She trailed off, not wanting to use "cute". Not again anyway. Cute wasn't a word for her. It was a word for girls like Kitty, or Jean. Not for girls like _her_.

'And why won't he talk to me?' she challenged the algebra equation before her. 'It's not like Ah _wanted_ to be with the X-Men. It wasn't _mah_ fight, so why should Ah have stuck around?'

Rogue pushed the book away from her as she sat up. She knew there was a good reason why she should never get close to people.

'Because you end up _caring_,' she muttered.

'Fred!' Todd suddenly hollered from the hallway just outside her bedroom door.

Rogue jumped, her head pivoting towards the noise. 'What-'

'Give me back my Snickers!' Todd shouted, his voice fading as he evidently hopped down the stairs. 'Give 'em back!'

She shook her head, smiling. Todd was as protective of his Snickers bars as she was of her ice cream. She heard more commotion downstairs as the two boys struggled and fought over the chocolate, followed by Pietro's verbal encouragements.

'Shut up, you idiots!' she heard Lance shout from the top of the stairs. 'Some people are trying to do homework, you know!'

Rogue lost her smile. Lance never did homework on a Saturday. Which left only…her. He was getting the others to stop…for her.

She heard footsteps thumping down the stairs, and without hesitation she grabbed her jacket lying on the floor and raced down after him. Lance was going out for a drive.

She had just enough time to jump into the passenger seat before Lance shifted into drive and pressed his foot to the pedal. He screeched into a violent stop when he realised he had a passenger, throwing her against the dash.

'Ow! Ah thought you were-'

'Are you crazy?' he demanded, staring at her in disbelief. 'What the hell do you think you're doing?'

Rogue pushed herself back onto the seat, straightening her shoulders and ignoring the pain along the top of her chest. 'Ah'm coming with you,' she said firmly.

A small frown came over Lance's face, which reminded her strongly of Scott. However, she thought it best not to voice the comparison.

'Look, I'm not going anywhere special,' he told her, looking away. 'You might want to get out.'

Rogue tried not to show her disappointment, but she refused to leave. She couldn't. She wanted him to understand… What exactly, she wasn't sure. She didn't understand any of it herself.

'Ah'm staying.'

Lance's jaw clenched visibly. Without a word, he accelerated suddenly out of the driveway, throwing them both back against the chairs.

She thought about reaching for her seatbelt, but then stopped. She trusted him.

*

He had stopped on the outskirts of Bayville, in a secluded spot that always had a great view of the sunset. But it was early afternoon and the sun still sat above them, unobstructed by clouds. They stood side by side staring across at the city before them, not having spoken a word since leaving the house.

After what seemed like an eternity, or possibly only a few minutes, Lance finally spoke. 'What are you doing here, Rogue?' he asked quietly.

'Ah wanted to talk to you…' She trailed off, clearing her throat. 'About what happened a few days ago, in that lab.'

He frowned at the memory, remembering how conflicted she looked when he had questioned her alliance to them. He hadn't meant to do it, but having seen her with the X-Geeks. It had been too much. He felt as if they were slowly losing her to them. To _him_. 'What were you doing with them anyway?'

'Kurt, he was, it was an accident, and Ah was there, and…' Rogue trailed off once more. 'Ah was just helping them to get blue boy back, that's all.'

Lance wasn't sure what he was more angry about – that she helped them, or that she didn't think it was a big deal. 'It's your life, you do whatever the hell you wanna do.'

'Lance-'

'Look, forget it,' he interrupted harshly. He silently cursed himself when he saw her flinch out of the corner of his eye. He turned to face her. 'Look, Rogue, I'm sorry. I just don't understand any of this.'

She looked up at him, clearly lost and confused. 'Ah don't know why Ah did it! Ah just…Ah thought it was the right thing to do.'

Lance wondered if she realised how much of an X-Man she sounded, and he clenched his hands. He didn't want to lose her to _them_. Not if he could help it, and holding a grudge wasn't helping. He took a deep breath, and forced a smile. 'It's over now, right? Maybe we should forget about it.'

She looked at him for a moment, then smiled tentatively. 'Ah'd like that.'

He turned back to the view of the city. It was so…shiny.

'You know what Ah miss?' Rogue asked quietly after a few minutes. 'Ah miss-' But she broke off.

Lance glanced at her. 'Miss what, Rogue?'

'Ah miss the way things used to be, when there was just the three of us in the house. Todd, and you, and me. Things just seemed simpler.'

He frowned, turning to look at her profile. 'And they aren't now?'

'It's…it's just a lot more crowded, Ah guess.'

Lance wondered if she was thinking about Summers. He turned away once again. 'Yeah, you could say that.'

*

'Rogue, do you trust me?'

She was surprised by the question, seemingly out of nowhere, and she turned to look at him. But he was still staring straight ahead. 'You're probably the only person Ah trust right now, Lance,' she answered truthfully.

He turned, moving so that he stood closely before her. 'I won't hurt you, I promise.'

She knew what he wanted, what he was going to do, and her heart started to thump hard against her chest. She swallowed, wanting to refuse him – not wanting to hurt him – but she forced herself to slowly nod her head. Just once, but it was enough.

She could see his hands travelling from his side and up, towards her face. She made fists with her hands to keep them from reaching out to stop him.

Her heart was thundering, and she was certain that he could hear it. But her eyes didn't move from his face.

He smiled down at her then. And it was real. Tender and genuine.

And she relaxed, uncurling her fingers.

He pushed back her hair, tucking the strands behind her ear. And then the tips of his fingers skimming, tracing, along the curve of her face. His palm placed gently against her cheek.

Touch.

She wondered if this was what heaven felt like.

**end part eight.**


	9. Chapter Nine

**Title:** A Stranger's Touch: Allied Strangers  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary: **A bond between two people can take many years to develop. Or a few weeks. [First part in what will hopefully be a series]  
**Type of fic:** Story  
**Disclaimer: **All recognisable characters and places are not mine. They belong to Marvel and/or Marvel Studios, WB, Film Roman (I think), and whoever else claims rights to them.  
**Distribution: **FF.net and Random Thoughts. All else, please just ask.  
**Author's notes: **Sorry there's quite a bit, and with more to probably follow!  
#01 - / denotes psychic thoughts /  
#02 - This is pretty much - and very much - an AU story, however a lot of the stuff that's happened in Seasons One and Two WILL be included. Not all, but some.  
#03 - My accent-writing ability extends only to "Ah" and "mah". I suck at it majorly.  
#04 - This story is under the assumption that the Brotherhood members do NOT know that Mystique and Ms Darkholme are the same person, and that it was Mystique who recruited all the members. Remember - AU.  
#05 - Thanks to wolviesgal's Home Page for the use of transcripts.

***

**Allied Strangers**

_Chapter Nine_

'So he threw off your game by sticking Rogue in the simulation,' Jean was saying as the walked towards the school bus. 'What's the big deal?'

Scott bristled at her words, but tried hard not to show it. 'Me fouling up isn't the problem,' he lied, making sure that his face was away from hers as he said it.

'What then? Because he chose Rogue?'

'Yeah…I guess.' He sighed. 'Look, how can we pretend that she's the enemy in battle simulations while we're trying to convince her to be our friend? If we can't think of her as a friend, she'll never want to join us.'

'Hey, it was only a simulation, Scott,' Jean said. 'Nobody wants you to stop trying with Rogue.'

'I know, Jean, but…' Scott trailed off, shaking his head. 'I don't want to stop trying with Rogue, but it's not like she's making it easy on me, or on Kurt.'

'If anyone can break through to her, it's you.'

'_I hope so,_' he thought to himself, but said, 'Maybe.'

'Listen, I like Rogue, and I think she's a good person. Why else would she have helped me from Fred? And with finding Kurt? I mean, she didn't have to tell us about what had happened to him in the lab if she really didn't want to.'

'I _know_ that Rogue is a good person,' Scott replied with conviction. 'I know it.'

'I guess there's nothing we can do but wait.'

'I just hope we don't end up waiting forever.'

*

Scott heard something behind him, and he turned. 'Rogue?'

She stared at him, her face showing no emotions. 'Ah need to know, Scott. What is it you want from me?'

He was surprised at the question, unsure of where it came from and why she was asking it now. At the same time, a small part of him was pleased that _she_ was initiating conversation with him, however challenging it may be. 'I…I don't want anything.' He paused, wanting to be honest with her. 'Well, except maybe your friendship.'

Rogue looked unconvinced. 'Know what Ah want? The truth. Am Ah a target for you and your X-Freaks?'

It was a simple question with a simple answer, but Scott hesitated, his mind returning to that morning's simulation. 'We, uh-'

'It's true, isn't it?' she interrupted, accusation colouring her tone. 'Ah know all about your battle simulation. The one where Ah'm the enemy.'

For a moment she looked wounded, but then her inexpressive mask returned.

'No!' Scott asserted, realising too late that his reaction only confirmed her words. 'No, wait. Rogue, it's complicated. We're not who you think we are. We've never tried to hurt you. You've been lied to.' He took a breath. 'Look, we want you with us.'

A long-ago dream returned to him just then, of him pleading with her – "Will you come with us? With _me_?"

'Yeah? Well, sorry. Not interested.' But despite what she said, Rogue's demeanour had softened perceptibly. Her shoulders had dropped, and her eyes weren't quite as hard as before. Not only that, but there was very little force behind her words.

'Hey, everything all right?' Paul's familiar voice intruded, interrupting them. 'Redetzke's looking for you.'

'Paul here is your friend,' Rogue said quietly, not taking her eyes off him. 'But I bet you'd never practice fighting him.'

But before Scott could reply to either one of them, Principal Darkholme was standing in place of Paul. His eyes widened.

'I'm afraid you'd lose that bet, Rogue,' Principal Darkholme announced with a slight sneer. She turned to him. 'Hello, Scott. Are you more surprised to see me?'

Principal Darkholme was quickly replaced by Mystique. 'Or me?'

*

Rogue had been frozen ever since Paul had turned into Principal Darkholme. She knew of only one person who could take anybody's form – Mystique. But what would she be doing here?

And just as quickly as Principal Darkholme had appeared, she was gone, and Mystique, in her true form, stood before them. Rogue heard Scott speaking, but not his words. Nor Mystique's reply.

Rogue looked from one to the other, wondering if this was all some surreal nightmare. She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could say anything Mystique moved…and pushed Scott over the side of the precipice.

She screamed, rushing forward to grab him. 'No! Scott!' However, before she could even reach the edge, Mystique took her arm and pulled her back.

Rogue jerked away from the woman's grip, forcing herself to keep from attacking her. 'Why did you do that? Why?' she demanded in a high-pitched voice she'd never heard herself use before.

'I'm protecting you from his lies,' Mystique answered serenely. 'He only wants to hurt you, just like Charles Xavier and all the other X-Men.'

'And you don't?' she asked bitterly. 'What did you do to Paul and to Principal Dark…'

Rogue trailed off, suddenly understanding everything. The Principal's lenient attitude towards her, towards the Brotherhood, and her severity with the X-Men. She took another step back, shaking her head. 'You _can't_ be…' she whispered, her eyes moving wildly from Mystique's smiling, silent form, to the edge of the rock face. '_You're_ Principal Darkholme!'

'Of course, sweetheart,' Mystique replied, her smile widening. 'Now, let's-'

'No!' Rogue cried out, almost blind with sudden rage. 'No more lies! No more secrets!'

Without even realising what she was doing, she jumped forward and took hold of Mystique's arm. She wanted to know. She _had_ to know.

*

Scott concentrated on hanging onto the rock face and not moving. He could hear Rogue's panicked voice, and Mystique's calmer one. He wanted to focus on their words, but didn't want to risk his life on it. With as little movement as possible, he gingerly moved his head from side to side, searching for a foothold.

'Oh, Scott!' At the sound of his name, he looked up. Rogue was leaning over the edge, looking down at him, a look of anguish on her face. 'Ah'm sorry!' She reached down and took hold of his arm, gripping it hard.

'You are like an angel, Kate,' he murmured, remembering a line from a play they had performed weeks ago. Pushing himself off the rock face, and using his legs as leverage, Scott managed to pull himself up. He looked at her. 'Thanks for the lift, Rogue.'

But she wasn't looking back at him, suddenly looking worried. 'Don't thank me yet!'

He lifted his head, just in time to see Mystique pushing a boulder towards them. He moved, hoping to shield Rogue with his body, but instead felt himself being pulled back towards the edge of the rock face. He gasped in shock at the sudden slap of cold water, swallowing some in the process.

Scott could feel Rogue's grip on him slipping, and he struggled against the current to face her, reaching out and taking her other arm. He noticed that her makeup had washed away in the water, and he silently wondered why she hid herself so readily. She was pretty.

'Hang on to me!' he commanded, coughing as water filled his mouth. He hoped that she heard him.

She looked as if she was trying hard to keep calm, but then nodded. She heard him.

The returned strength of Rogue's hold on him was a comfort, and despite the freezing water and the struggle to stay afloat, Scott found himself wanting to just sleep and never wake up.

*

Rogue kept her focus solely on Scott, on keeping him awake and alive. She made a concentrated effort on _not_ thinking about what she had discovered through Mystique's memories.

Scott. Awake and alive. That was all that mattered.

'Scott, hang on,' she muttered, shivering violently as she dragged him out of the water. 'You're going to be okay. You're going to be…' She trailed off, squinting at all the whiteness around them. 'Oh man, we're gonna die!'

Scott groaned, and she looked down at him. 'Thanks for the pep talk.' Just then he started to shiver violently.

'It's okay, don't talk,' she instructed, her arms tightening around him. She was glad to see that he was still conscious, as she had felt him slipping earlier.

'Rogue…you saved my life,' he muttered, his voice sounding raspy. 'Thanks.'

Rogue felt a warmth pass through her, and she looked down at him. 'Ah owed it to you. Mystique had…' She trailed off, not wanting to remember what it was that she saw in the woman's mind. 'Ah know you're not my enemy, Scott.'

'I never was, Rogue,' he answered, his voice so weakened that she barely heard him.

'Scott? Don't pass out, okay? Come on, wake up!' She shook him slightly.

Rogue heard a muffled sound in front of them, and she looked up. Wolf.

'Mystique,' she whispered, knowing instantly who it was. She felt her mind begin to crowd with recently collected memories, but she forced it all back. She didn't want to know, not anymore.

The wolf snarled, but its gaze was directed at Scott.

She felt the fear low in her stomach, hitting her so suddenly that she breathed in sharply. 'Scott?' she called out, not taking her eyes off the animal. She shook him. 'Wake up!'

He groaned, and the wolf's ears pricked at the sound. It seemed to grin as it started to advance deliberately towards them – towards _Scott_.

Rogue moved suddenly, holding tightly onto Scott as she scrambled backwards. She felt her muscles protest painfully at the action, but she ignored it. She had to keep him away from her.

Scott mumbled something, but she didn't hear him. She frowned, not liking the way the wolf was quickly closing the gap between them. 'What?'

'X-Men…coming…'

Rogue never thought she'd ever be happy to be hearing those words. 'They better hurry up!'

'They…they can't…find us…'

She felt a scream of frustration well up inside of her, but she swallowed it. She had to think. The wolf was only meters away from them, and who knew how far away the X-Men were. Think!

Rogue looked down. Through the red lenses, she noticed that Scott's eyes were closed. Scott's eyes. She moved quickly. 'Then we'll give them something they can find.' She took hold of his glasses, and pulled them away from his face. 'Open your eyes, Scott.'

He opened his eyes without question or protest, and two red beams shot up into the sky.

The wolf snarled again. Rogue's head snapped up, surprised at how close it had gotten to them so quickly. A sudden anger filled her. Lies. All lies!

Her fingers moved from where they rested against Scott's hair to his cheek, ignoring the coldness of his skin. Her eyes narrowed as she felt the power surge through her. Scott's energy, so familiar, so intimate, even though she'd only ever touched him once before.

'Some friendly advice, teach,' she said under her breath, knowing that the wolf – that Mystique – could hear. 'Don't mess with the Rogue!'

Rogue felt the rush of success at the sound of the wolf's squeal, and she allowed herself a bitter smile.

*

'Rogue?'

She looked up. The first thing he noticed was that her makeup was back, and it seemed as if she'd applied much more on than usual.

'You okay?' he asked when she said nothing.

She turned her gaze back to out the window. 'Yeah.'

He felt awkward, unsure of what to say. 'I wanted to let you know how glad I am that you're finally with us, Rogue.'

A small frown crossed her face at his words, but she nodded.

'Um, Professor Xavier wants to see us in the lounge room,' he said when once again she kept silent.

'Us?'

'All of us,' he confirmed. 'The X-Men.'

'X-Men.' Her mouth formed the words, but he didn't hear her.

He moved forward, placing a hand on her shoulder. He felt her tense at his touch, but he didn't pull away. 'That includes you, Rogue. If you want.'

She didn't move for a long moment. Then she looked up at him. 'Thank you, Scott.'

**end part eight.**


	10. Chapter Ten

**Title:** A Stranger's Touch: Allied Strangers  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary: **A bond between two people can take many years to develop. Or a few weeks. [First part in what will hopefully be a series]  
**Type of fic:** Story  
**Disclaimer: **All recognisable characters and places are not mine. They belong to Marvel and/or Marvel Studios, WB, Film Roman (I think), and whoever else claims rights to them.  
**Distribution: **FF.net and Random Thoughts. All else, please just ask.  
**Author's notes: **Sorry there's quite a bit, and with more to probably follow!  
#01 - / denotes psychic thoughts /  
#02 - This is pretty much - and very much - an AU story, however a lot of the stuff that's happened in Seasons One and Two WILL be included. Not all, but some.  
#03 - My accent-writing ability extends only to "Ah" and "mah". I suck at it majorly.  
#04 - This story is under the assumption that the Brotherhood members do NOT know that Mystique and Ms Darkholme are the same person, and that it was Mystique who recruited all the members. Remember - AU.  
#05 - Thanks to wolviesgal's Home Page for the use of transcripts.

***

**Allied Strangers**

_Chapter Ten_

Although glad that she wasn't around to see their preparations, Lance couldn't stop worrying about Rogue's whereabouts. She was supposed to have been back from her field trip an hour ago, but there was no sign of her.

'Yo, maybe they got lost?' Todd suggested. 'Or maybe they're stuck or something?'

'Can we eat now?' Fred asked, his eyes not having moved from the cake all afternoon.

'We're waiting for her!' Lance snapped, turning to glare at them both.

'Do I have to be here?' Pietro said, sounding bored. 'You know, I don't even think she likes me. I should probably-'

'You're staying,' he interrupted.

The younger boy looked at him, wanting to protest, but then shrugged. 'Whatever, man. She just better be here soon.'

Lance said nothing.

'Know what I thought was funny?' Pietro continued, certainly sounding amused. 'That Rogue replaced Jean. I'm sure Scott Summers liked that!'

Todd and Fred laughed, but Lance frowned. He had completely forgotten that Summers had also gone on the field trip. He had been so busy with wanting everything to be ready and as perfect as possible. There was no way the X-Freak would try anything, would he?

Just then he heard the sound of a car pulling into the drive. It had to be Rogue. There was nobody else.

'She's here.'

*

Rogue placed her hand on the doorknob, then paused. Her heart had been racing ever since she had left Professor Xavier's mansion. She wasn't ready to face them, the Brotherhood. Lance.

She didn't know what to say to them, how to explain what she was doing. They wouldn't understand, she knew. She could hear muffled voices inside, and she frowned. She couldn't put it off. She had to do it. She couldn't just sneak in then sneak back out, as much as she wanted to.

With a deep breath, Rogue turned the handle and slowly pushed the door in. She stepped inside, but the voices had grown silent. Her frown deepened as she wondered what was going on. She walked towards the living room, then froze.

'Surprise!'

A large "Happy Birthday!" banner hung across the room from the ceiling. Two candles, one in the shape of a "1" and the other a "6", sat with flames flickering on a large chocolate-iced cake. A small collection of wrapped packages beside the cake. And the boys standing behind the table that held the cake and gifts.

All of them grinning happily at her.

Rogue had forgotten what day it was.

'Happy birthday, Roguey!' Todd said, hopping up and down on the spot.

'Yeah, happy birthday!' Fred echoed, beaming at her as if there was no conflict between them.

'Big surprise, eh?' Pietro asked.

Her eyes sought out Lance, and her stomach filled with butterflies at the way he was looking at her. This wasn't what she expected, nor wanted. Not like this.

Rogue pivoted and ran. Away from the closest thing she had ever come to family. Away from the boys' obvious effort and thoughtfulness.

She had to get out. Get away.

*

Lance was stunned.

'Well, wasn't expecting that,' Pietro commented beside him.

'Yo, she didn't look very happy,' Todd said, sounding worried. Just then his words were emphasised by the slamming of a door.

Without a word, Lance left them and followed Rogue upstairs. He knocked loudly, calling out her name. Something was wrong. He could feel it.

'Rogue! Let me in!' he shouted, hoping he didn't sound too demanding.

He was answered with silence.

Annoyed, he tried the door knob…and was surprised to find it turning. He pushed in the door. 'Rogue, what's wrong? Are you-'

He broke off as he realised why it was that she was walking from the wardrobe to the bed, and back again. 'What are you doing?'

She ignored him as he realised that she was not even bothering to pack neatly. She was just throwing her clothes into the bag.

Both afraid and frustrated, Lance moved to stand in front of the wardrobe to keep her from taking more clothes. 'Rogue-'

Instead of confronting him she turned and walked to the dresser, pulling open a drawer and emptying it into the bag.

Lance didn't want to feel afraid, and so instead concentrated on his anger. 'What the hell are you doing?' he demanded, moving once more to block her.

She stopped, lifting her head and finally looking at him. 'Get out of mah way,' she said in a quiet but determined tone.

'No, not until you tell me what the hell is going on,' he replied, keeping his own tone as unwavering as hers. He mind could hear himself using stronger language to convey his aggravation, but not in her presence. Never with Rogue.

'You're smart, Lance, much smarter than anyone gives you credit for. Why don't you figure it out.' She moved around him, and back to the drawers where she pulled out her Brotherhood uniform.

Lance watched as she stared at the deep green material, his heart beginning to race as he waited for her to either pack it…or leave it.

Rogue turned and headed towards the bed, towards the bag. But she didn't place it with her other belongings, instead gently laying it against the pillows.

It hit him then. She wasn't just leaving the house, she was leaving the Brotherhood. She was leaving him.

Just like he didn't want to feel the fear, Lance refused to feel the ache that arrived with the realisation. He was angry, he _wanted_ to be angry. Before he knew what he was doing, and thus have a chance to change his mind, he reached out and grabbed Rogue's arms as she walked past.

'You are _not_ going to be with them!' he ordered furiously.

Instead of the fear that he had expected in her eyes, Lance saw a flash of rage. Instead of being pushed away, he felt himself being pulled forward. 'Tell me you didn't know that Principal Darkholme is Mystique!' she demanded suddenly, her voice hard and cold and dark.

He stared at her, all the air and strength leaving his body. 'What?'

Rogue's eyes challenged him that he tell her what she wanted to hear. 'Tell me that you didn't know!'

'I…I didn't know, Rogue.' Lance let go of her arm, taking a step back.

'Don't lie to me, Lance.'

His mind flashed with the times he had ever been in the Principal's office. And then in Mystique's presence. 'Darkholme can't be Mystique…' he muttered, shaking his head. All thoughts of Rogue and her departure were all but forgotten for the moment.

'She is. She lied. And _you_ lied!'

The sudden increased pitch of her tone as she accused him caught his attention, and he looked closely at her. She didn't think that he had deliberately kept the truth from her, did she? But she did, staring back at him with a look of betrayal.

Lance frowned at the thought that she could believe he would ever betray her. 'No. Rogue, listen to me, I didn't know.' He took a step towards her, wanting her to _know_ that he wouldn't lie to her. Never to Rogue.

At his words she seemed to…deflate. 'Everything she ever told me, everything Ah've come to learn and know from her, all lies,' she said in a defeated tone. 'You wouldn't think it would be such a big deal, but it hurts.'

He looked away from her, turning his head to gaze out of the window. He thought of Mystique, of her promises to him – that he would never have to fear being who he was, that he would never have to hide _what_ he was. That if he stood by her, she would offer him the world on a silver platter.

Instead, it seemed that she had taken away the one shining brightness in his life. With her deceit and half-truths, Mystique took Rogue away from him.

'I know.'

*

'I always thought you were too good for us anyway.'

She had continued packing in silence, moving around his still form when she needed to. When she had finished, the reverberation of the zip on her bag had sounded extraordinarily loud. He had finally spoken when she had picked it up and had walked past him.

She turned to look at him. 'Lance-'

'Go. Do what you have to.'

Rogue was at loss for words. She didn't _want _to leave, but she knew she couldn't stay. Her hands clenched tightly on the handle of her bag, and her mind flew to her first day at the Brotherhood house. She remembered Lance moving to take her bag, and their first contact. Of her unrelenting fear and distrust of her own skin. Of how the boy standing before her had changed all that, and how that first physical connection had culminated into a simple touch that had made her feel as if she was nothing less than flawless.

'Goodbye, Lance,' she said softly, finally turning away, unable to continue seeing the wounded and betrayed look in his eyes any longer. She couldn't help wondering if that look arose from what Mystique had done, or from her own actions.

Rogue started to walk away when he called our her name. Her heart jumped at the almost-panic in his tone, and she turned to face him.

Lance took a step towards her, but stopped. 'Just don't…don't forget us, okay?'

With no hesitation, Rogue dropped her bag and closed the gap between them. She threw her arms around his waist and hugged him tightly, briefly. 'Ah won't,' she whispered.

As she felt his arms move to hold her, she pulled away. Rogue kept her face averted from him as she turned and fled the room, grabbing her bag as she did so. As she passed the entrance of the living room she paused momentarily, staring in at the abandoned celebrations. The boys stared back at her, but kept silent. They knew what she was doing.

Rogue looked away and continued to outside. Hard as she tried, a few tears managed to slip down her cheeks.

But they were gone by the time she reached the taxi outside. Waiting, to take her away. Waiting, to bring her….

To where? Her new home? Her new family? Her new friends?

A new life?

**end part ten.**

**end.**

**Extra author's notes:** Once again - first and foremost, major "thank yous" to one and all who have read and left reviews (and for those who haven't). They really are very much appreciated. Secondly, this is the end of the story. It came out a little more "mushier" than I had first wanted, but I hope that, at least, it managed to convey what it was that I wanted to get across. I think it did. And lastly, I _am_ working on a sequel (I'm hoping on turning the story into a series) that pretty much follows the end of this one.


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